Order Code RL30567
Party Leaders in the United States Congress,
1789-2007
Updated February 27, 2007
Valerie Heitshusen
Analyst in American National Government
Government and Finance Division

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Party Leaders in the United States Congress,
1789-2007
Summary
This report briefly describes current responsibilities and selection mechanisms
for 15 House and Senate party leadership posts and provides tables with historical
data, including service dates, party affiliation, and other information for each. Tables
have been updated as of the report’s issuance date to reflect leadership changes. The
report will be updated as changes in House and Senate party leadership positions
occur.
Although party divisions appeared almost from the First Congress, the formally
structured party leadership organizations now taken for granted are a relatively
modern development. Constitutionally-specified leaders, namely the Speaker of the
House and the President pro tempore of the Senate, can be identified since the first
Congress. Other leadership posts, however, were not formally recognized until about
the middle of the 19th century, and some are 20th century creations.
In the earliest Congresses, those House Members who took some role in leading
their party were often designated by the President as his spokesperson in the
chamber. By the early 1800s, an informal system developed when the Speaker began
naming his lieutenant to chair one of the most influential House committees.
Eventually, other members wielded significant influence via other committee posts
(e.g., the post-1880 Committee on Rules). By the end of the 19th century, the formal
position of floor leaders had been established in the House.
The Senate was slower than the House to develop formal party leadership
positions, and there are similar problems in identifying individual early leaders. For
instance, records of party conferences in the 19th century Senate are not available.
Memoirs and other secondary sources reveal the identities of party conference or
caucus chairs for some, but not all, Congresses after about 1850, but these posts
carried very little authority. It was not uncommon for Senators to publicly declare
that within the Senate parties, there was no single leader. Rather, through the turn
of the 20th century, individuals who led the Senate achieved their position through
recognized personal attributes, including persuasion and oratorical skills, rather than
election or appointment to formal leadership posts. The formal positions for Senate
party floor leaders eventually arose from the position of conference chair.
Owing to the aforementioned problems in identifying informal party leaders in
earlier Congresses, the tables in this report identify each leadership position
beginning with the year in which each is generally regarded to have been formally
established. The report excludes some leadership posts in order to render the amount
of data manageable. An appendix explains the abbreviations used to denote political
parties, and a bibliography cites useful references, especially in regard to sources for
historical data.

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Contents
Introduction and Methodological Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Identifying House Leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Identifying Senate Leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Party Affiliation Designations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Leadership Posts Excluded . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
House Positions: Descriptions and Historical Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Speaker of the House of Representatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Party Floor Leader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Party Whip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Conference or Caucus Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Senate Positions: Descriptions and Historical Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
President Pro Tempore of the Senate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Deputy Presidents Pro Tempore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Permanent Acting President Pro Tempore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Party Floor Leader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Conference Chair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Party Whip . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Appendix: Political Party Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Source Notes and Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
List of Tables
Table 1. Speakers of the House of Representatives, 1789-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Table 2. House Republican Floor Leaders, 1899-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Table 3. House Democratic Floor Leaders, 1899-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Table 4. House Democratic Whips, 1901-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Table 5. House Republican Whips, 1897-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Table 6. House Republican Conference Chairs, 1863-2007
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Table 7. House Democratic Caucus Chairs, 1849-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Table 8. Presidents Pro Tempore of the Senate, 1789-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Table 9. Deputy Presidents Pro Tempore of the Senate, 1977-2007 . . . . . . . . . 26
Table 10. Permanent Acting President Pro Tempore of the Senate,
1964-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Table 11. Senate Republican Floor Leaders, 1919-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Table 12. Senate Democratic Floor Leaders and Conference Chairs,
1893-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Table 13. Senate Republican Conference Chairs, 1893-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Table 14. Senate Democratic Whips, 1913-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Table 15. Senate Republican Whips, 1915-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

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Party Leaders in the
United States Congress, 1789-2007
Introduction and Methodological Notes
Although party divisions sprang up almost from the First Congress, the formally
structured party leadership organizations now taken for granted are a relatively
modern development. Constitutionally-specified leaders, namely the Speaker of the
House and the President pro tempore of the Senate, can be identified since the first
Congress. Other leadership posts, however, were not officially recognized until
about the middle of the 19th century, and some are 20th century creations. The
following tables identify 15 different party leadership posts beginning with the year
when each is generally regarded to have been formally established.
The tables herein present data on service dates, party affiliation, and other
information for the following House and Senate party leadership posts:
House Positions
1. Speakers of the House of Representatives, 1789-2007
2. House Republican Floor Leaders, 1899-2007
3. House Democratic Floor Leaders, 1899-2007
4. House Democratic Whips, 1901-2007
5. House Republican Whips, 1897-2007
6. House Republican Conference Chairs, 1863-2007
7. House Democratic Caucus Chairs, 1849-2007
Senate Positions
8. Presidents Pro Tempore of the Senate, 1789-2007
9. Deputy Presidents Pro Tempore of the Senate, 1977-2007
10. Permanent Acting President Pro Tempore of the Senate, 1964-2007
11. Senate Republican Floor Leaders, 1919-2007
12. Senate Democratic Floor Leaders and Conference Chairs, 1893-2007
13. Senate Republican Conference Chairs, 1893-2007
14. Senate Democratic Whips, 1913-2007
15. Senate Republican Whips, 1915-2007
This information is current through the leadership elections and appointments made
for the first session of the 110th Congress.1
1 This report was originally written and updated by Paul S. Rundquist and Richard C. Sachs,
(continued...)

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Included for each post are leaders’ names, party and state affiliations, and dates
and Congresses of service. For most Congresses, the report indicates years of service
only, except in the tables for the House Speaker and the Senate President pro
tempore, both of which include specific dates of service. When a Member died while
holding a leadership office, however, the date of death is included as the end-of-
service date (except in Table 13). In cases where a leadership change occurs during
the course of a Congress, exact dates of service are indicated where possible. With
respect to length of service, the report includes all instances in which a Member held
a particular leadership post, regardless of whether the Member held the post for the
entire Congress or only a portion of it.
Official congressional documents (House Journal and Senate Journal,
Congressional Record, and predecessor publications) can be used to document the
tenure of the constitutionally-specified leaders (i.e., Speaker and President pro
tempore). The actions of the party organizations in choosing other leaders, such as
floor leaders or caucus or conference chairs, frequently went unacknowledged in
these sources, however. In the frequent absence of party caucus records in the latter
half of the 19th century, scholars have had to rely on secondary sources, such as
memoirs and correspondence, for evidence of party leadership position-holding. The
concluding portion of this report, “Source Notes and Bibliography,” provides more
information about sources and the reliability of leadership lists.
Identifying House Leaders
The changing nature of congressional leadership provides additional challenges
to identifying leaders not constitutionally specified (e.g., floor leader).2 Even for
party elected posts, determining who held other positions can be problematic in
earlier Congresses. For example, identifying each party’s conference (or caucus)
chair often requires reliance on incomplete historical records of conference meetings
or inferences made from informal practices (e.g., noting which Member nominated
his party’s candidate for Speaker, a motion that often fell to the conference chair).
In the House, for example, it was the common practice of President Thomas
Jefferson and his immediate successors to designate a Member as their principal
legislative spokesman. Often these spokesmen held no other formal leadership
position in the House, and Presidents frequently designated new spokesmen, or even
specialized spokesmen for individual measures, as their terms progressed. As these
and other “leaders” were not chosen by a congressional party group or by a party
leader such as the Speaker, these presidential designees have not been included here
as “party leaders.”
1 (...continued)
former Specialists in American National Government at CRS, and Faye M. Bullock, former
Technical Information Specialist at CRS. The listed author has updated and expanded this
report and is available to respond to inquiries on the subject.
2 See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and citation of the multiple sources used in identifying leaders in the House of
Representatives.

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Most historians who study the 19th century House acknowledge that an informal
“positional leadership” system emerged possibly as early as the “War Hawk”
Congress (1811-1813) under Speaker Henry Clay. Under this system, the Speaker
— who at the time designated the chairmen of the standing committees — would
name his principal lieutenant to be chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.
After the Appropriations Committee was split from the Ways and Means Committee
in 1865, the Speaker’s principal floor lieutenant received either of these chairs.
Sometimes, the Speaker chose a rival for the speakership to chair one of these
committees in an effort to resolve intra-party disputes.
It is somewhat inaccurate, however, to consider these early leaders to be
majority leaders in the modern sense, and they have not been included here. The
position of chair of the Appropriations or Ways and Means Committee inevitably
made the incumbent a powerful congressional figure because of the important
legislation reported from these committees. These chairs were not, however, chosen
in a vote by the full party organization, as the majority or minority House leaders are
now. Furthermore, other leading congressional figures, such as the Republican leader
Thomas Brackett Reed, achieved their positions of influence within the House by
service on other committees, such as — in Reed’s case — the post-1880 Rules
Committee.
Identifying Senate Leaders
The Senate developed an identifiable party leadership later than the House. The
few existing records of party conferences in the 19th century Senate are held in private
collections. Memoirs and other secondary sources reveal the identities of party
conference or caucus chairs for some, but not all, Congresses after about 1850; these
posts, however, carried very little authority. It was not uncommon for Senators to
declare publicly that within the Senate parties there was no single leader.3 Instead,
through the turn of the 20th century, individuals who led the Senate achieved their
position through recognized personal attributes, including persuasion and oratory
skills, rather than the current practice of election to most official leadership posts.
The development of Senate party floor leaders was one of slow evolution, like
the House, but they arose for the most part from the post of conference chair. Not
until 1945 did Senate Republicans specify that the conference chair and floor leader
posts must be held by separate Senators. Among Senate Democrats, the floor leader
is also chair of the conference. In many secondary sources, Senators are identified
as “floor leaders” before existing party conference records so identify them. In this
report, footnotes to the tables attempt to clarify when a leader was identified through
official sources such as caucus minutes or through secondary sources.
Party Affiliation Designations
Another problem in identifying party leaders in early Congresses is the matter
of party affiliation. Secondary sources reporting on party leaders often relied upon
the information compiled in early editions of the Biographical Directory of the
3 Woodrow Wilson, Congressional Government (Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 1885), p. 223.

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United States Congress. As the editors of the 1989 edition of the Biographical
Directory noted:
The most serious source of error and confusion in previous editions [of the
Biographical Directory] [was] the designations of party affiliation. Many of the
party labels added to the editions of 1913 and 1928 were anachronistic, claiming
for the two modern parties Senators and Representatives elected to Congress
before the [modern] Democratic or Republican parties existed. Other entries
ignored the frequent shifts in party affiliation during the nineteenth century or
omitted reference to short-lived and regional political parties and thus failed to
reflect the vigor and diversity of nineteenth-century politics.4
The 1989 and 1997 editions of the Biographical Directory resolved these differences,
and their designations of party affiliations are principal sources for this report. The
1997 edition of the Biographical Directory, in particular, included more complete
notations where Members changed their party affiliations while serving in Congress.5
The main source for early party affiliations of Senator leaders, principally Presidents
pro tempore, is volume four of Senator Robert C. Byrd’s The Senate, 1789-1989.
(Historical Statistics, 1789-1992).6 An appendix explains the abbreviations used to
denote party affiliations in this report.
Leadership Posts Excluded
The tables in this report exclude some leadership posts in order to render
manageable the amount of data provided. Specifically, the Senate and House party
conference secretaries, and the chairs of party committees (e.g., steering committees,
policy committees, committees on committees, and campaign committees) are not
presented here. Junior party whips are also not identified. At least since the 1930s
in the House, both parties have selected (or allowed the principal whip to designate)
subordinate whips. The lack of adequate records makes it almost impossible to
identify all deputy whips, regional whips, and zone whips who have been appointed
in the last 70 years.
4 U.S. Congress, Senate, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress 1774-1989:
the Continental Congress, September 5, 1774, to October 21, 1788, and The Congress of the
United States, from the First through the One Hundredth Congresses, March 4, 1789, to
January 3, 1989, inclusive, Bicentennial edition, S.Doc. 100-34, 100th Cong., 2nd sess.
(Washington: GPO, 1989), p. 3.
5 Biographical Directory of the American Congress 1774-1996 (Washington: CQ Staff
Directories, Inc., 1997), p. xi. This commercially published edition of the Biographical
Directory is a continuation of earlier editions that were published under public auspices.
An online, updated, version is also available at [http://bioguide.congress.gov/biosearch/
biosearch.asp].
6 Robert C. Byrd, The Senate, 1789-1989, 4 vols., S. Doc. 100-20, 100th Cong., 1st sess.
(Washington: GPO, 1988-1993), vol. 4, Historical Statistics, 1789-1992. Hereafter cited
as Byrd’s Historical Statistics. See also, Gerald Gamm and Steven S. Smith, “Last Among
Equals: The Senate’s Presiding Officer,” paper presented at the annual meeting of the
American Political Science Association, Boston, MA, Sept. 3-6, 1998.

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House Positions:
Descriptions and Historical Tables
Speaker of the House of Representatives
The position of Speaker is constitutionally specified in Article 1, Section 2. The
Speaker is the only party leader who is chosen by a roll-call vote of the full House of
Representatives, which occurs after each party has nominated a candidate for the
position when a new Congress convenes. House rules give the Speaker various
formal duties. These include, for example, administering the oath of office to new
Members, signing House-passed bills and resolutions, presiding over the House (and
making rulings on the presence of a quorum, points of order, etc.), referring measures
to committees, and naming the party’s slate of members for certain committee
positions. Each party conference cedes additional powers and responsibilities to a
Speaker from its own party, including influence over the makeup of certain standing
committees. For more information, consult CRS Report 97-780, The Speaker of the
House: House Officer, Party Leader, and Representative, by James V. Saturno, and
CRS Report RL30857, Speakers of the House: Elections, 1913-2005, by Richard S.
Beth and James V. Saturno.
Table 1. Speakers of the House of Representatives, 1789-2007
Speaker
Party
State
Congress
Dates
Frederick A.C. Muhlenberg
N/A
PA
1st
Apr. 1, 1789-
Mar. 3, 1791
Jonathan Trumbull
N/A
CT
2nd
Oct. 24, 1791-
Mar. 3, 1793
Frederick A.C. Muhlenberg
N/A
PA
3rd
Dec. 2, 1793-
Mar. 3, 1795
Jonathan Dayton
N/A
NJ
4th-5th
Dec. 7, 1795-
Mar. 3, 1799
Theodore Sedgwick
N/A
MA
6th
Dec. 2, 1799-
Mar. 3, 1801
Nathaniel Macon
N/A
NC
7th-9th
Dec. 7, 1801-
Mar. 3, 1807
Joseph B. Varnum
N/A
MA
10th-11th
Oct. 26, 1807-
Mar. 3, 1811
Henry Clay
R(DR)a
KY
12th-13th
Nov. 4, 1811-
Jan. 19, 1814b
Langdon Cheeves
R(DR)a
SC
13th
Jan. 19, 1814-
Mar. 3, 1815
Henry Clay
R(DR)a
KY
14th-16th
Dec. 4, 1815-
Oct. 28, 1820c
John W. Taylor
R(DR)a
NY
16th
Nov. 15, 1820-
Mar. 3, 1821

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Speaker
Party
State
Congress
Dates
Philip Barbour
R(DR)a
VA
17th
Dec. 4, 1821-
Mar. 3, 1823
Henry Clay
R(DR)a
KY
18th
Dec. 3, 1823-
Mar. 6, 1825d
John W. Taylor
R(DR)a
NY
19th
Dec. 5, 1825-
Mar. 3, 1827
Andrew Stevenson
N/A
VA
20th
Dec. 3, 1827-
Mar. 3, 1829
Andrew Stevenson
J
VA
21st-23rd
Dec. 7, 1829-
June 2, 1834e
John Bell
N/A
TN
23rd
June 2, 1834-
Mar. 3, 1835
James K. Polk
J
TN
24th-25th
Dec. 7, 1835-
Mar. 3, 1839
Robert M.T. Hunter
W
WA
26th
Dec. 16, 1839-
Mar. 3, 1841
John White
W
KY
27th
May 31, 1841-
Mar. 3, 1843
John W. Jones
D
VA
28th
Dec. 4, 1843-
Mar. 3, 1845
John W. Davis
D
IN
29th
Dec. 1, 1845-
Mar. 3, 1847
Robert C. Winthrop
W
MA
30th
Dec. 6, 1847-
Mar. 3, 1849
Howell Cobb
D
GA
31st
Dec. 22, 1849-
Mar. 3, 1851
Linn Boyd
D
KY
32nd-33rd
Dec. 1, 1851-
Mar. 3, 1855
Nathaniel P. Banks
Amf
MA
34th
Feb. 2, 1856-
Mar. 3, 1857
James L. Orr
D
SC
35th
Dec. 7, 1857-
Mar. 3, 1859
William Pennington
R
NJ
36th
Feb. 1, 1860-
Mar. 3, 1861
Galusha A. Grow
R
PA
37th
July 4, 1861-
Mar. 3, 1863
Schuyler Colfax
R
IN
38th-40th
Dec. 7, 1863-
Mar. 3, 1869g
Theodore Pomeroy
R
NY
40th
Mar. 3, 1869h
James G. Blaine
R
ME
41st-43rd
Mar. 4, 1869-
Mar. 3, 1875

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Speaker
Party
State
Congress
Dates
Michael C. Kerr
D
IN
44th
Dec. 6, 1875-
Aug. 19, 1876i
Samuel J. Randall
D
PA
44th-46th
Dec. 4, 1876-
Mar. 3, 1881
J. Warren Keifer
R
OH
47th
Dec. 5, 1881-
Mar. 3, 1883
John G. Carlisle
D
KY
48th-50th
Dec. 3, 1883-
Mar. 3, 1889
Thomas B. Reed
R
ME
51st
Dec. 2, 1889-
Mar. 3, 1891
Charles F. Crisp
D
GA
52nd-53rd
Dec. 7, 1891-
Mar. 3, 1895
Thomas B. Reed
R
ME
54th-55th
Dec. 2, 1895-
Mar. 3, 1899
David B. Henderson
R
IA
56th-57th
Dec. 4, 1899-
Mar. 3, 1903
Joseph G. Cannon
R
IL
58th-61st
Nov. 9, 1903-
Mar. 3, 1911
James B. (Champ) Clark
D
MO
62nd-65th
April 4, 1911-
Mar. 3, 1919
Frederick H. Gillett
R
MA
66th-68th
May 19, 1919-
Mar. 3, 1925
Nicholas Longworth
R
OH
69th-71st
Dec. 7, 1925-
Mar. 3, 1931
John N. Garner
D
TX
72nd
Dec. 7, 1931-
Mar. 3, 1933
Henry T. Rainey
D
IL
73rd
Mar. 9, 1933-
Aug. 19, 1934j
Joseph W. Byrns
D
TN
74th
Jan. 3, 1935-
June 4, 1936k
William B. Bankhead
D
AL
74th-76th
June 4, 1936-
Sept. 15, 1940l
Sam T. Rayburn
D
TX
76th-79th
Sept. 16, 1940-
Jan. 3, 1947
Joseph W. Martin, Jr.
R
MA
80th
Jan. 3, 1947-
Jan. 3, 1949
Sam T. Rayburn
D
TX
81st-82nd
Jan. 3, 1949-
Jan. 3, 1953
Joseph W. Martin, Jr.
R
MA
83rd
Jan. 3, 1953-
Jan. 3, 1955
Sam T. Rayburn
D
TX
84th-87th
Jan. 5, 1955-
Nov. 16, 1961m

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Speaker
Party
State
Congress
Dates
John W. McCormack
D
MA
87th-91st
Jan. 10, 1962-
Jan. 3, 1971
Carl Albert
D
OK
92nd-94th
Jan. 21, 1971-
Jan. 3, 1977
Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr.
D
MA
95th-99th
Jan. 4, 1977-
Jan. 3, 1987
James C. Wright, Jr.
D
TX
100th-101st
Jan. 6, 1987-
June 6, 1989n
Thomas S. Foley
D
WA
101st-103rd
June 6, 1989-
Jan. 3, 1995
Newt Gingrich
R
GA
104th-105th
Jan. 4, 1995-
Jan. 3, 1999
J. Dennis Hastert
R
IL
106th-109th
Jan. 6, 1999-
Jan. 3, 2007
Nancy Pelosi
D
CA
110th-
Jan. 4, 2007-

Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources.
Note: A key to all party abbreviations can be found in the Appendix of this report.
a. Although the Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1996 identifies these
Speakers as Republicans, the party designation “Democratic Republicans” is more widely used
and familiar to readers. This designation, R(DR), should not be taken to refer to the
contemporary Republican Party, which did not emerge until the 1850s.
b. Resigned from the House of Representatives, January 19, 1814.
c. Resigned the Speakership on October 28, 1820.
d. Resigned from the House, March 6, 1825.
e. Resigned from the House, June 2, 1834.
f. Speaker Nathaniel P. Banks served in the House three separate times under three different party
designations. In the 34th Congress, he served as an American Party Member.
g. Resigned from the House, March 3, 1869.
h. Elected Speaker, March 3, 1869, and served one day.
i. Died in office, August 19, 1876.
j. Died in office, August 19, 1934.
k. Died in office, June 4, 1936.
l. Died in office, September 15, 1940.
m. Died in office, November 16, 1961.
n. Resigned the Speakership, June 6, 1989; resigned from the House, June 30, 1989.
Party Floor Leader
At an organizational meeting prior to the beginning of a new Congress, each
party conference (or caucus) in the House selects its floor leader (also called majority
leader or minority leader, as appropriate) in a secret-ballot vote. The majority party
floor leader works closely with the Speaker and is largely responsible for the party’s
daily legislative operations, in consultation with other party leaders. Similarly, the
minority party floor leader directs the party’s ongoing legislative strategies and
operations and typically serves as the spokesperson for the party in the House. Each

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party assigns additional responsibilities to its respective floor leader. For more
information on the majority party floor leader position, see CRS Report RL30665,
The Role of the House Majority Leader: An Overview, by Walter J. Oleszek.
Table 2. House Republican Floor Leaders, 1899-2007
Floor Leader
State
Congress
Dates
Sereno E. Payne
NY
56th-61st
1899-1911
James R. Mann
IL
62nd-65th
1911-1919
Franklin W. Mondell
WY
66th-67th
1919-1923
Nicholas Longworth
OH
68th
1923-1925
John Q. Tilson
CT
69th-71st
1925-1931
Bertrand H. Snell
NY
72nd-75th
1931-1939
Joseph W. Martin, Jr.
MA
76th-79th
1939-1947
Charles Halleck
IN
80th
1947-1949
Joseph W. Martin, Jr.
MA
81st-82nd 1949-1953
Charles Halleck
IN
83rd
1953-1955
Joseph W. Martin, Jr.
MA
84th- 85th
1955-1959
Charles Halleck
IN
86th-88th
1959-1965
Gerald R. Ford
MI
89th-93rd
1965-Dec. 6, 1973a
John J. Rhodes
AZ
93rd-96th
Dec. 7, 1973-1981
Robert H. Michel
IL
97th-103rd
1981-1995
Richard K. Armey
TX
104th-107th
1995-2003
Tom DeLay
TX
108th-109th
2003-Sept. 28, 2005b
Roy Blunt
MO
109th
Sept. 28, 2005-Feb. 2, 2006c
John Boehner
OH
109th, 110th-
Feb. 2, 2006-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources.
Note: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the floor leader was also majority leader.
a. Resigned from the House on December 6, 1973, after having been confirmed by the Senate to
become Vice President to fill the post vacated by the resignation of Spiro T. Agnew.
b. Resigned from leader position on September 28, 2005.
c. Appointed acting Republican floor leader on September 28, 2005, to replace Tom DeLay
temporarily until the conference could hold new elections on February 2, 2006. He continued
serving as Republican Whip during this period.

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CRS-10
Table 3. House Democratic Floor Leaders, 1899-2007
Floor Leader
State
Congress
Dates
James D. Richardson
TN
56th-57th
1899-1903
John Sharp Williams
MS
58th-60th
1903-1908
James B. (Champ) Clark
MO
60th-61st
1908-1911
Oscar W. Underwood
AL
62nd-63rd
1911-1915
Claude Kitchin
NC
64th-65th
1915-1919
James B. (Champ) Clark
MO
66th
1919-1921
Claude Kitchin
NC
67th
1921-1923
Finis J. Garrett
IN
68th-70th
1923-1929
John N. Garner
TX
71st
1929-1931
Henry T. Rainey
IL
72nd
1931-1933
Joseph W. Byrns
TN
73rd
1933-1935
William B. Bankhead
AL
74th
1935-June 4, 1936a
Sam T. Rayburn
TX
75th-76th
1937-Sept. 16, 1940b
John W. McCormack
MA
76th-79th
Sept. 16, 1940-1947c
Sam T. Rayburn
TX
80th 1947-1949
John W. McCormack
MA
81st-82nd
1949-1953
Sam T. Rayburn
TX
83rd 1953-1955
John W. McCormack
MA
84th-87th
1955-Jan. 10, 1962d
Carl Albert
OK
87th-91st
Jan. 10, 1962-1971e
Thomas Hale Boggs
LA
92nd
1971-1973f
Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr.
MA
93rd-94th
1973-1977
James Wright
TX
95th-99th
1977-1987
Thomas S. Foley
WA
100th-101st
1987-June 6, 1989g
Richard A. Gephardt
MO
101st-103rd
June 14, 1989h-2003
104th-107th
Nancy Pelosi
CA
108th-109th
2003-2007
Steny H. Hoyer
MD
110th-
2007-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources.
Note: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the floor leader was also majority leader.
a. Elected Speaker, filling the vacancy caused by the death of Speaker Joseph W. Byrns. Records
indicate that Representative John J. O’Connor of New York, chair of the House Rules
Committee, served as acting majority leader during the 14 remaining days of the 74th Congress.
O’Connor does not, however, appear to have been formally elected majority leader at that time
and therefore is not included in this list.

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CRS-11
b. Elected Speaker following the death of Speaker William B. Bankhead.
c. Elected majority leader on September 16, 1940, to fill post made vacant by the election of Sam
Rayburn as Speaker.
d. Elected Speaker at the start of the 87th Congress, 2nd session, following the death of Sam Rayburn.
e. Elected majority leader at commencement of the 87th Congress, 2nd session, when Majority Leader
John McCormack was elected Speaker to succeed Speaker Rayburn.
f. Disappeared on a flight from Anchorage to Juneau, Alaska, October 16, 1972. Presumed dead
pursuant to House Resolution 1, 93rd Congress.
g. Elected Speaker on June 6, 1989, following Speaker James C. Wright’s resignation from that post
on the same date.
h. Elected majority leader on June 14, 1989, to fill the post made vacant by the election of Thomas
S. Foley to be Speaker on June 6, 1989.
Party Whip
Each House party caucus currently elects its own party whip at organizational
meetings as a new Congress begins. House Republicans (or a representative group
of their conference) have always elected their party whips; Democrats in the House
appointed a chief whip until 1986. Chief deputy whips are currently appointed by the
party’s chief whip; additional members to serve in the whip team are either similarly
appointed or, instead, elected by subsets of the caucus. The whip organization is
responsible for assessing the passage prospects for upcoming measures, mobilizing
member support for leadership priorities, informing the party rank-and-file regarding
legislative scheduling and initiatives, and informing the top party leadership
regarding the sentiment of the rank-and-file. For more information, see CRS Report
RS20499, House Leadership: Whip Organization, by Judy Schneider.
Table 4. House Democratic Whips, 1901-2007
Whip
State
Congress
Dates
Oscar W. Underwooda
AL
56th
1901
James T. Lloyd
MO
57th-60th
1901-1908b
N/Ac
61st-62nd
1909-1913
Thomas M. Bell
GA
63rd
1913-1915
N/Ac
64th-65th, 66th
1915-1921
William A. Oldfield
AR
67th-70th
1921-Nov. 19, 1928d
John McDuffie
AL
70th-71st
1928-1933
72nd
Arthur Greenwood
IN
73rd
1933-1935
Patrick J. Boland
PA
74th-77th
1935-May 18, 1942e
Robert Ramspeck
GA
77th-79th
1942-Dec. 31, 1945f
John J. Sparkman
AL
79th
1946-1947
John W. McCormacka
MA
80th 1947-1949
J. Percy Priest
TN
81st-82nd
1949-1953
John W. McCormacka
MA
83rd 1953-1955

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CRS-12
Whip
State
Congress
Dates
Carl Alberta
OK
84th-87th
1955-1962
Thomas Hale Boggsa
LA
87th-91st
1962-1971
Thomas P. O’Neill, Jr.a
MA
92nd
1971-1973
John J. McFall
CA
93rd-94th
1973-1977
John W. Brademas
IN
95th-96th
1977-1981
Thomas S. Foleya
WA
97th-99th
1981-1987
Tony Coelhog
CA
100th-101st
1987-June 14, 1989
William H. Gray, III
PA
101st-102nd
June 14, 1989-Sept. 11, 1991h
David E. Bonior
MI
102nd-103rd
Sept. 11, 1991-Jan. 15, 2002i
104th-107th
Nancy Pelosia
CA
107th-108th
Jan. 15, 2002-2003j
Steny H. Hoyera
MD
108th -109th
2003-2007
James E. Clyburn
SC
110th-
2007-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources.
Note: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the Democratic whip was the majority whip.
a. Ascended (or re-ascended) to party floor leader.
b. Resigned from position as Democratic whip in 1908 at the conclusion of the 60th Congress.
c. For these periods, there is no official record — in the minutes of the Democratic Caucus or
elsewhere — of the name of the Democratic whip. Some scholars believe that Representative
Thomas Bell may have been the whip from 1909 to 1919; others believe the whip for that period
may have been Representative John Nance Garner. See Randall B. Ripley, “The Party Whip
Organizations in the United States House of Representatives,” American Political Science
Review, vol. 58, Sept., 1964, p. 504.
d. Died in office, November 19, 1928.
e. Died in office, May 18, 1942.
f. Resigned from the House of Representatives, December 31, 1945.
g. Representative Tony Coelho was the first elected Democratic whip.
h. Resigned from the House of Representatives, September 11, 1991.
i. Elected July 11, 1991, but did not assume the House Democratic whip post until his predecessor in
the position, William H. Gray, III, resigned from Congress on September 11, 1991.
j. Elected on October 10, 2001, but did not assume the position of House Democratic whip until
January 15, 2002, the date on which Bonior’s resignation as whip became effective.

---

CRS-13
Table 5. House Republican Whips, 1897-2007
Whip
State
Congress
Dates
James A. Tawney
MN
55th-58th
1897-1905
James E. Watson
IN
59th-60th
1905-1909
John W. Dwight
NY
61st
1909-1913
62nd
Charles H. Burke
SD
63rd
1913-1915
Charles M. Hamilton
WY
64th-65th
1915-1919
Harold Knutson
MN
66th-67th
1919-1923
Albert H. Vestal
IN
68th-71st
1923-1931
Carl G. Bachmann
WV
72nd
1931-1933
Harry L. Englebright
CA
73rd-78th
1933-May 13, 1943a
Leslie C. Arends
IL
78th-79th
1943-1975
80th
81st-82nd
83rd
84th-93rd
Robert H. Michelb
IL
94th-96th
1975-1981
Trent Lott
MS
97th-100th
1981-1989
Dick Cheney
WY
101st
1989-Mar. 17, 1989c
Newt Gingrich
GA
101st-103rd
Mar. 22, 1989-1995c
Tom DeLayb
TX
104th-107th
1995-2003
Roy D. Bluntb
MO
108th-109th
2003d-
110th-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources.
Note: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the Republican whip was the majority whip.
a. Died in office, May 13, 1943.
b. Ascended to party floor leader.
c. Elected House Republican whip on March 22, 1989, following Representative Dick Cheney’s
resignation from the House on March 17, 1989, to become Secretary of Defense.
d. Served concurrently as whip and acting Republican floor leader from September 28, 2005, to
February 2, 2006.
Conference or Caucus Chair
The Republican Conference and the Democratic Caucus are the organizations
of the members of the respective parties in the House. Each conference has an elected
chair, who presides over its meetings. Decisions made by the conference (and often
publicly promulgated by the chair) are generally regarded as the collective sentiment
of the respective House party contingent.

---

CRS-14
Table 6. House Republican Conference Chairs, 1863-2007
Chair
State
Congress
Dates
Justin S. Morrilla
VT
38th-39th
1863-1867
N/Ab
40th
1867-1869
Robert C. Schenckc
OH
41st
1869-1871
Nathaniel P. Banksc
MA
Austin Blair
MI
42nd
1871-1873
Horace Maynard
TN
43rd
1873-1875
George W. McCrary
IA
44th
1875-1877
Eugene Hale
ME
45th
1877-1879
William P. Frye
ME
46th
1879-1881
G.M. Robeson
NJ
47th
1881-1883
Joseph G. Cannon
IL
48th-50th
1883-1889
T.J. Henderson
IL
51st
1889-1895
52nd-53rd
Charles H. Grosvenor
OH
54th-55th
1895-1899
Joseph G. Cannon
IL
56th-57th
1899-1903
William P. Hepburn
IA
58th-60th
1903-1909
F.D. Currier
NH
61st
1909-1913
62nd
William S. Greene
MA
63rd-65th
1913-1919
Horace M. Towner
IA
66th-67th
1919-1923
Sydney Anderson
MN
68th
1923-1925
Willis C. Hawley
OR
69th-71st
1925-1933
72nd
Robert Luce
MA
73rd
1933-1935
Frederick R. Lehlbach
NJ
74th
1935-1937
Roy Woodruff
MI
75th-79th
1937-1951
80th
81st
Clifford Hope
KS
82nd
1951-1957
83rd
84th
Charles Hoeven
IA
85th-87th
1957-1963
Gerald R. Ford
MI
88th
1963-1965
Melvin Laird
WI
89th-90th
1965-1969
John B. Anderson
IL
91st-95th
1969-1979
Samuel L. Devine
OH
96th
1979-1981

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CRS-15
Chair
State
Congress
Dates
Jack Kemp
NY
97th-99th
1981-June 4, 1987d
Dick Cheney
WY
100th
June 4, 1987-1989d
Jerry Lewis
CA
101st-102nd
1989-1993
Richard K. Armey
TX
103rd
1993-1995
John A. Boehner
OH
104th-105th
1995-1999
J.C. Watts
OK
106th-107th
1999-2003
Deborah Pryce
OH
108th-109th
2003-2007
Adam Putnam
FL
110th-
2007-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources.
Note: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the Republican Party was in the majority.
a. Representative Justin S. Morrill is the first officially designated Republican caucus chair. There
exists no clear evidence of formal chairs of Republican organizations in earlier Congresses.
b. Caucus minutes show three Members (Representatives Nathaniel Banks, Luke Poland, and Samuel
Hooper) chairing three separate meetings.
c. Caucus minutes show Representative Robert C. Schenck elected chair, but Representative Nathaniel
P. Banks chairing two early meetings, possibly in Schenck’s absence.
d. On June 4, 1987, Representative Dick Cheney was elected conference chair to succeed
Representative Jack Kemp, who resigned from the post.
Table 7. House Democratic Caucus Chairs, 1849-2007
Chair
State
Congress Dates
James Thompson
PA
31st
1849-1851
N/Aa
32nd
1851-1853
Edson B. Olds
OH
33rd
1853-1855
George W. Jones
TN
34th
1855-1857
N/Ab
35th
1857-1859
George S. Houston
AL
36th
1859-1861
N/Ac
37th-40th
1861-1869
William E. Niblackd
IN
41st
1869-1871
Samuel J. Randalld
PA
N/Ae
42nd
1871-1873
William E. Niblack
IN
43rd
1873-1875
Lucius Q.C. Lamar
MS
44th
1875-1877
Hiester Clymer
PA
45th
1877-1879

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CRS-16
Chair
State
Congress Dates
John F. House
TN
46th
1879-1881
N/Af
47th
1881-1883
George W. Geddes
OH
48th
1883-1885
J. Randolph Tucker
VA
49th
1885-1887
Samuel S. Cox
NY
50th
1887-1889g
William S. Holman
IN
51st
1889-1895
52nd-53rd
David B. Culberson
TX
54th
1895-1897
James D. Richardson
TN
55th
1897-1899
James Hay
VA
56th-58th
1899-1905
Robert L. Henry
TX
59th
1905-1907
Henry D. Clayton
AL
60th-61st
1907-1911h
Albert S. Burleson
TX
62nd
1911-1913h
A. Mitchell Palmer
PA
63rd
1913-1915
E.W. Saunders
VA
64th-65th
1915-1919
Arthur G. Dewalt
PA
66th
1919-1921
Sam T. Rayburn
TX
67th
1921-1923
Henry T. Rainey
IL
68th
1923-1925
Charles D. Carter
OK
69th
1925-1927
Arthur Greenwood
IN
70th
1927-1929
David Kincheloe
KY
71st
1929-1930i
William W. Arnold
IL
72nd
1931-1933
Clarence F. Lea
CA
73rd
1933-1935
Edward T. Taylor
CO
74th
1935-1937
Robert L. Doughton
NC
75th
1937-1939
John W. McCormack
MA
76th
1939-Sept. 16, 1940j
Richard M. Duncan
MO
77th
1941-1943
Harry Sheppard
CA
78th
1943-1945
Jere Cooper
TN
79th
1945-1947
Aime Forand
RI
80th
1947-1949

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CRS-17
Chair
State
Congress Dates
Francis E. Walter
PA
81st
1949-1951
Jere Cooper
TN
82nd
1951-1953
Wilbur Mills
AR
83rd
1953-1955
John J. Rooney
NY
84th
1955-1957
Melvin Price
IL
85th-86th
1957-1961
Francis E. Walter
PA
87th-88th
1961-May 31, 1963k
Albert Thomas
TX
88th
1964-1965
Eugene Keogh
NY
89th
1965-1967
Dan Rostenkowski
IL
90th-91st
1967-1971
Olin Teague
TX
92nd-93rd
1971-1975
Philip Burton
CA
94th
1975-1977
Thomas S. Foley
WA
95th-96th
1977-1981
Gillis W. Long
LA
97th-98th
1981-1985
Richard Gephardt
MO
99th-100th
1985-1989
William H. Gray, III
PA
101st
Jan. 4-June 14, 1989l
Steny H. Hoyer
MD
101st-103rd
June 21, 1989-1995m
Vic Fazio
CA
104th-105th
1995-1999
Martin Frost
TX
106th-107th
1999-2003
Robert Menendez
NJ
108th-109th
2003-Dec. 16, 2005n
James E. Clyburn
SC
109th
Dec. 16, 2005n-2007
Rahm Emanuel
IL
110th-
2007-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources.
Note: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the Democratic Party was in the majority.
a. No clear records remain for this Congress. In early practice, the caucus chair often offered the
various organizational resolutions at the beginning of a Congress (e.g., the nomination of his
party’s candidate for Speaker, or the motion to elect the Speaker); examination of these motions
can often help in a determination of who was caucus chair. However, several different
Democratic Members offered the organizing resolutions for the 31st Congress.
b. No clear data for this period exist.
c. No clear data for this period exist. Representative John Hickman nominated Representative F.P.
Blair as Speaker in 1861, but no records show whether Hickman was caucus chair.

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CRS-18
d. Representative Samuel J. Randall nominated the party’s candidate for Speaker. Caucus records,
however, show both Representatives William B. Niblack and Randall as having served as chair
during the Congress. The caucus records specify no dates of service.
e. Representative Fernando Wood nominated the Democratic leadership slate in the House, but there
is no other evidence to show he was elected caucus chair.
f. Available data show that Representative John F. House offered the Democrats’ nomination for
Speaker in the 47th Congress. However, later data show Representative W.S. Rosecrans issuing
the next call for a Democratic Caucus meeting; there is no evidence to suggest that Rosecrans
was actually elected caucus chair.
g. Former Parliamentarian Clarence Cannon’s notes state that “[Representative Samuel J.] Cox died
during this Congress and [Representative James B.] McCreary evidently succeeded or acted for
him.” Representative Cox died on September 10, 1889, six months after the sine die
adjournment of the 50th Congress and the convening of the 51st Congress.
h. Caucus records are contradictory for this period. They show the election of Representative James
Hay as chair on January 19, 1911, but do not mention a resignation by incumbent chair Henry
P. Clayton, nor do they specify that Hay was elected chair for the new Congress. Later, they
show the election of Representative Albert S. Burleson on April 11, 1911.
i. Resigned from the House, October 5, 1930; there is no record of an election to fill the vacancy as
caucus chair.
j. Resigned following election as majority floor leader, September 16, 1940; records do not indicate
that a successor was chosen during the remainder of the Congress.
k. Died in office, May 31, 1963. Caucus chair post vacant until January 21, 1964.
l. Representative William H. Gray, III, vacated the caucus chair post when he was elected Democratic
whip on June 14, 1989.
m. Representative Steny H. Hoyer was elected caucus chair on June 21, 1989, following the June 14,
1989 election of Representative William H. Gray as Democratic whip.
n. Representative Robert Menendez resigned from the House on January 16, 2006, after being
apppointed to the Senate seat for New Jersey vacated by Jon Corzine when he was elected
governor. Representative Menendez had previously resigned from the caucus chair position,
to which Representative James E. Clyburn was elected on December 16, 2005.

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CRS-19
Senate Positions:
Descriptions and Historical Tables
President Pro Tempore of the Senate
Pursuant to Article 1, Section 3, of the U.S. Constitution, the President pro
tempore of the Senate is the chamber’s presiding officer in the absence of the
President of the Senate (the Vice President of the United States). The President pro
tempore is elected by the full Senate as the formal institutional leader, and in current
practice, is the longest serving member of the majority party.7 Until 1890, the Senate
elected a President pro tempore whenever the Vice President was not in attendance,
whether for a day, or permanently, as in the case of the Vice President’s death or
resignation. When the Vice President returned, the President pro tempore lost his
place. When the Vice President was again absent, the Senate again elected a
President pro tempore — in many cases the same Senator who had been chosen
before. By the standing order agreed to on March 12, 1890, the Senate declared that
the President pro tempore shall hold the office during “the pleasure of the Senate and
until another is elected, and shall execute the duties thereof during all future absences
of the Vice President until the Senate does otherwise order.”8
The Senate’s President pro tempore is, pursuant to statute, currently third in the
line of presidential succession (behind the Vice President and the Speaker of the
House). In the Succession Act of 1792, the position was initially designated to serve
in line after the Vice President.9 An 1886 act altered the succession line by replacing
congressional leaders with cabinet secretaries, but the President pro tempore post was
reinstated in the line (in the current position) in 1947.10
As presiding officer, the President pro tempore has the power to decide points
of order and enforce decorum on the floor. The President pro tempore has other
formal powers (e.g., appointing conferees; appointing certain Senate officers; and
serving on, or appointing others to, working groups, commissions and advisory
boards); however, because the direction of Senate business has fallen in modern
times to the majority leader, almost all of these powers are actually exercised by the
majority leader in practice.
As explained in the notes to Table 9 and Table 10 below, the Senate has also
had past occasion to select a Deputy President pro tempore and a Permanent Acting
President pro tempore. For more information on the President pro tempore (and the
7 Electing the longest-serving majority party Senator has generally been the practice since
1890, with some exceptions. The only exception since 1945 has been the election of
Senator Arthur Vandenberg in 1947.
8 U.S. Congress, Senate Journal, 50th Cong., 2nd sess., p. 165. See also “President Pro
Tempore of the Senate,” Congressional Record, vol. 21 (Mar. 12, 1890), pp. 2144-2150.
9 1 Stat. 240.
10 24 Stat 1; 61 Stat. 380.

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CRS-20
deputy and acting posts), consult CRS Report RL30960, The President Pro Tempore
of the Senate: History and Authority of the Office, by Christopher M. Davis.
Table 8. Presidents Pro Tempore of the Senate, 1789-2007
Name
Party
State
Congress
Date Elected
John Langdon
Pro-Admin
NH
1st
Apr. 6, 1789
Richard Henry Lee
Anti-Admin
VA
2nd
Apr. 18, 1792
John Langdon
Pro-Admin
NH
2nd
Nov. 5, 1792
Mar. 1, 1793
Ralph Izard
Pro-Admin
SC
3rd
May 31, 1794
Henry Tazewell
Anti-Admin
VA
3rd
Feb. 20, 1795
R(DR)a
4th
Dec. 7, 1795
Samuel Livermore
F
NH
4th
May 6, 1796
William Bingham
F
PA
4th
Feb. 16, 1797
William Bradford
F
RI
5th
July 6, 1797
Jacob Read
F
SC
5th
Nov. 22, 1797
Theodore Sedgwick
F
MA
5th
June 27, 1798
John Laurance
F
NY
5th
Dec. 6, 1798
James Ross
F
PA
5th
Mar. 1, 1799
Samuel Livermore
F
NH
6th
Dec. 22, 1799
Uriah Tracy
F
CT
6th
May 14, 1800
John E. Howard
F
MD
6th
Nov. 21, 1800
James Hillhouse
F
CT
6th
Feb. 28, 1801
Abraham Baldwin
R
GA
7th
Dec. 7, 1801
Stephen R. Bradley
R(DR)a
VT
7th
Dec. 14, 1802
Feb. 25, 1803
Mar. 2, 1803
John Brown
Anti-Admin
KY
8th
Oct. 17, 1803
Jan. 23, 1804
Jesse Franklin
R(DR)a
NC
8th
Mar. 10, 1804
Joseph Anderson
R(DR)a
TN
8th
Jan. 15, 1805
Feb. 28, 1805
Mar. 2, 1805
Samuel Smith
R(DR)a
MD
9th
Dec. 2, 1805
Mar. 18, 1806
Mar. 2, 1807
10th
Apr. 16, 1808
Stephen R. Bradley
R(DR)a
VT
10th
Dec. 28, 1808
John Milledge
R(DR)a
GA
10th
Jan. 30, 1809

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CRS-21
Name
Party
State
Congress
Date Elected
Andrew Gregg
R(DR)a
PA
11th
June 26, 1809
John Gaillard
R(DR)a
SC
11th
Feb. 28, 1810
Apr. 17, 1810
John Pope
R(DR)a
KY
11th
Feb. 23, 1811
William H. Crawford
R(DR)a
GA
12th
Mar. 24, 1812
Joseph B. Varnum
R(DR)a
MA
13th
Dec. 6, 1813
John Gaillard
R(DR)a
SC
13th
Apr. 18, 1814
Nov. 25, 1814b
14th
[no election]
15th
Mar. 6, 1817
Mar. 31, 1918
James Barbour
R(DR)a
VA
15th
Feb. 15, 1819
16th
[no election]
John Gaillard
R(DR)a
SC
16th
Jan. 25, 1820
17th
Feb. 1, 1822
Feb. 19, 1823
CRR
18th
May 21, 1824
J
19th
Mar. 9, 1825
Nathaniel Macon
J
NC
19th
May 20, 1826
Jan. 2, 1827
Mar. 2, 1827
Samuel Smith
J
MD
20th
May 15, 1828
21st
Mar. 13, 1829
May 29, 1830
Mar. 1, 1831
Littleton Tazewell
J
VA
22nd
July 9, 1832
Hugh L. White
J
TN
22nd
Dec. 3, 1832
23rd
[no election]
George Poindexter
AJ
MS
23rd
June 28, 1834
John Tyler
AJ
VA
23rd
Mar. 3, 1835
William R. King
J
AL
24th
July 1, 1836
Jan. 28, 1837
D
25th
Mar. 7, 1837
Oct. 13, 1837
July 2, 1838
Feb. 25, 1839
26th
July 3, 1840
Mar. 3, 1841
27th
Mar. 4, 1841
Samuel Southard
W
NJ
27th
Mar. 11, 1841
Willie P. Mangum
W
NC
27th
May 31, 1842
28th
[no election]
Ambrose H. Sevier
D
AR
29th
Dec. 27, 1845c

---

CRS-22
Name
Party
State
Congress
Date Elected
David R. Atchison
D
MO
29th
Aug. 8, 1846
Jan. 11, 1847
Mar. 3, 1847
30th
Feb. 2, 1848
June 1, 1848
June 26, 1848
July 29, 1848
Dec. 26, 1848
Mar. 2, 1849
31st
Mar. 5, 1849
Mar. 16, 1849
William R. King
D
AL
31st
May 6, 1850
July 11, 1850
32nd
[no election]
David R. Atchison
D
MO
32nd
Dec. 20, 1852
33rd
Mar. 4, 1853
Lewis Cass
D
MI
33rd
Dec. 4, 1854
Jesse D. Bright
D
IN
33rd
Dec. 5, 1854
34th
June 11, 1856
Charles E. Stuart
D
MI
34th
June 9, 1856
James M. Mason
D
VA
34th
Jan. 6, 1857
35th
Mar. 4, 1857
Thomas J. Rusk
D
TX
35th
Mar. 14, 1857
Benjamin Fitzpatrick
D
AL
35th
Dec. 7, 1857
Mar. 29, 1858
June 14, 1858
Jan. 25, 1858
36th
Mar. 9, 1859
Dec. 19, 1859
Feb. 20, 1860
Jesse D. Bright
D
IN
36th
June 12, 1860
Benjamin Fitzpatrick
D
AL
36th
June 26, 1860
Solomon Foot
R
VT
36th
Feb. 16, 1861
37th
Mar. 23, 1861
July 18, 1861
Jan. 15, 1862
Mar. 31, 1862
June 19, 1862
Feb. 18, 1863
38th
Mar. 4, 1863
Dec. 18, 1863
Feb. 23, 1864
Apr. 11, 1864
Daniel Clark
R
NH
38th
Apr. 26, 1864
Feb. 9, 1865

---

CRS-23
Name
Party
State
Congress
Date Elected
Lafayette S. Foster
R
CT
39th
Mar. 7, 1865
Benjamin F. Wade
R
OH
39th
Mar. 2, 1867
40th
[no election]
Henry B. Anthony
R
RI
41st
Mar. 23, 1869
Apr. 9, 1869
May 28, 1870
July 1, 1870
July 14, 1870
42nd
Mar. 10, 1871
Apr. 17, 1871
May 23, 1871
Dec. 21, 1871
Feb. 23, 1872
June 8, 1872
Dec. 4, 1872
Dec. 13, 1872
Dec. 20, 1872
Jan. 24, 1873
Matthew H. Carpenter
R
WI
43rd
Mar. 12, 1873
Mar. 26, 1873
Dec. 11, 1873
Dec. 23, 1874
Henry B. Anthony
R
RI
43rd
Jan. 25, 1875
Feb. 15, 1875
Thomas W. Ferry
R
MI
44th
Mar. 9, 1875
Mar. 19, 1875
Dec. 20, 1875
45th
Mar. 5, 1877
Feb. 26, 1878
Apr. 17, 1878
Mar. 3, 1879
Allen G. Thurman
D
OH
46th
Apr. 15, 1879
Apr. 7, 1880
May 6, 1880
Thomas F. Bayard, Sr.
D
DE
47th
Oct. 10, 1881
David Davis
I
IL
47th
Oct. 13, 1881
George F. Edmonds
R
VT
47th
Mar. 3, 1883
48th
Jan. 14, 1884
John Sherman
R
OH
49th
Dec. 7, 1885
John J. Ingalls
R
KS
49th
Feb. 25, 1887
50th
[no election]
51st
Mar. 7, 1889
Apr. 2, 1889
Feb. 28, 1890
Apr. 3, 1890d
Charles F. Manderson
R
NE
51st-53rd
Mar. 2, 1891

---

CRS-24
Name
Party
State
Congress
Date Elected
Isham G. Harris
D
TN
53rd
Mar. 22, 1893
Matt W. Ransom
D
NC
53rd
Jan. 7, 1895
Isham G. Harris
D
TN
53rd
Jan. 10, 1895
William P. Frye
R
ME
54th-56th
Feb. 7, 1896
57th-59th
Mar. 7, 1901
60th-62nd
Dec. 5, 1907
Charles Curtis
R
KS
62nd
Dec. 4, 1911
Augustus O. Bacon
D
GA
62nd
Jan. 15, 1912
Jacob H. Gallinger
R
NH
62nd
Feb. 12, 1912
Henry Cabot Lodge, Sr.
R
MA
62nd
Mar. 25, 1912
Frank B. Brandegee
R
CT
62nd
May 25, 1912
James P. Clarke
D
AR
63rd
Mar. 13, 1913
64th
Dec. 6, 1915
Willard Saulsbury, Jr.
D
DE
64th-65th
Dec. 14, 1916
Albert B. Cummins
R
IA
66th
May 19, 1919
67th-69th
Mar. 7, 1921
George H. Moses
R
NH
69th
Mar. 6, 1925
70th-72nd
Dec. 15, 1927
Key Pittman
D
NV
73rd
Mar. 9, 1933
74th-76th
Jan. 7, 1935
William H. King
D
UT
76th
Nov. 19, 1940
Pat Harrison
D
MS
77th
Jan. 6, 1941
Carter Glass
D
VA
77th
July 10, 1941
78th
Jan. 5, 1943
Kenneth D. McKellar
D
TN
79th
Jan. 6, 1945
Arthur Vandenberg
R
MI
80th
Jan. 4, 1947
Kenneth D. McKellar
D
TN
81st-82nd
Jan. 3, 1949
Styles Bridges
R
NH
83rd
Jan. 3, 1953
Walter F. George
D
GA
84th
Jan. 5, 1955
Carl T. Hayden
D
AZ
85th-90th
Jan. 3, 1957
Richard B. Russell, Jr.
D
GA
91st-92nd
Jan. 3, 1969
Allen J. Ellender
D
LA
92nd
Jan. 22, 1971
James O. Eastland
D
MS
92nd-95th
July 28, 1972
Warren G. Magnuson
D
WA
96th
Jan. 15, 1979
Milton R. Young
R
ND
96th
Dec. 4, 1980
Strom Thurmond
R
SC
97th-99th
Jan. 5, 1981
John C. Stennis
D
MS
100th
Jan. 6, 1987

---

CRS-25
Name
Party
State
Congress
Date Elected
Robert C. Byrd
D
WV
101st-103rd
Jan. 3, 1989
Strom Thurmond
R
SC
104th-106th
Jan. 4, 1995
Robert C. Byrd
D
WV
107th
Jan. 3, 2001e
Strom Thurmond
R
SC
107th
Jan. 3, 2001e
Robert C. Byrdf
D
WV
107th
June 6, 2001
Ted Stevens
R
AK
108th
Jan. 7, 2003
109th
Jan. 4, 2005
Robert C. Byrd
D
WV
110th
Jan. 4, 2007
Sources: The principal source for this table is Byrd’s Historical Statistics, pp. 647-653. See the
“Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description and full citation
of all sources.
Notes: A key to party abbreviations can be found in the Appendix of this report. Note that several
Senators holding the President pro tempore position were members of (or identified with) different
political parties during their congressional careers. This table lists the party with which each
individual was affiliated at the time of his service as President pro tempore. In cases in which the
historical sources indicate a party “switch” in the midst of a calendar year (without a specific date),
it is presumed that the party switch coincided with the beginning of a new Congress.
a. Although the Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1996 identifies these
Presidents pro tempore as Republicans, the party designation “Democratic Republicans” is more
widely used and familiar to readers. This designation, R(DR), should not be taken to refer to
the contemporary Republican Party, which did not emerge until the 1850s.
b. Senator John Gaillard was elected after the death of Vice President Elbridge Gerry on November
23, 1814, and continued to serve throughout the 14th Congress, as there was no Vice President.
c. There was no actual election. Senator Ambrose H. Sevier was “permitted to occupy the chair for
the day.” In their table of Presidents pro tempore, Gerald Gamm and Steven S. Smith do not
include Sevier’s service. See Gerald Gamm and Steven S. Smith, “Last Among Equals,” “Table
1: Presidents Pro Tempore of the Senate,” p.13.
d. As noted above, in March 1890, the Senate adopted a resolution stating that Presidents pro tempore
would hold office continuously until the election of another President pro tempore, rather than
being elected only for the period in which the Vice President was absent. That system has
continued to the present.
e. When the 107th Congress convened on January 3, 2001, Republican George W. Bush had been
elected President. Richard B. Cheney, Vice President-elect, would not be sworn in until
January 20, 2001. As a consequence, the Senate was evenly divided, 50 Democrats and 50
Republicans. When Congress convened on January 3, 2001, Vice President Al Gore, a
Democrat, remained as President of the Senate, providing Senate Democrats with an effective
majority of one. On January 3, 2001, the Senate adopted S. Res. 3, which provided for the
election of Senator Robert C. Byrd, Democrat of West Virginia, to serve as President pro
tempore from January 3 until the inauguration of President Bush and Vice President Cheney at
noon on January 20, at which time Senator Strom Thurmond, Republican of South Carolina,
would assume the office of President pro tempore. See “Election of the Honorable Robert C.
Byrd as President Pro Tempore and Election of the Honorable Strom Thurmond as President
Pro Tempore,” Congressional Record, vol. 147, January 3, 2001, p. 7.
f. Party control in the Senate shifted with the decision in May, 2001, of Senator Jim Jeffords to leave
the Republican party and to become an Independent, caucusing with Senate Democrats. On
June 6, the Senate agreed to S. Res. 100 electing Senator Byrd President pro tempore once
again.

---

CRS-26
The Senate has, on occasion, created special offices connected to the position
of President pro tempore. These two positions — detailed below — were created
for specific individuals under narrow circumstances and are not currently in use.
Deputy Presidents Pro Tempore. Pursuant to S. Res. 17 (95th Congress),
agreed to January 10, 1977, the Senate established (effective January 5, 1977) the
post of Deputy President pro tempore of the Senate to be held by “any Member of
the Senate who has held the Office of President of the United States or Vice
President of the United States.” Senator Hubert H. Humphrey was Deputy President
pro tempore until his death on January 13, 1978. In the 100th Congress, due to
concerns over the health of the President pro tempore, Senate John S. Stennis, the
Senate agreed on January 28, 1987, to S. Res. 90, authorizing the Senate to
designate a Senator to serve as Deputy President pro tempore during that Congress,
in addition to Senators who hold such office under the authority of S. Res. 17 (95th
Congress). Accordingly, on the same date the Senate agreed to S. Res. 91 (100th
Congress), designating Senator George H. Mitchell Deputy President pro tempore.
Table 9. Deputy Presidents Pro Tempore of the Senate,
1977-2007
Deputy President
Party
State
Congress
Dates
Pro Tempore
Hubert H. Humphrey
D
MN
95th
Jan. 5, 1977-Jan. 13, 1978
George J. Mitchell
D
ME
100th
Jan. 28, 1987-Nov. 29, 1988a
a. Senator Mitchell served as Deputy President pro tempore until he was elected majority leader for
the 101st Congress on November 29, 1988.
Permanent Acting President Pro Tempore. This post was initially
established in 1963 after Senate Majority Leader Michael J. Mansfield became
concerned that the stamina of then-President pro tempore, Senator Carl T. Hayden,
would be overly taxed by presiding over the prolonged debate on civil rights
legislation. In response, the Senate adopted S. Res. 232 and S. Res. 238 (88th
Congress) making Senator Lee Metcalf Acting President pro tempore from
December 9, 1963, until the meeting of the second session of the 88th Congress.
Continuing concerns over the presiding officer’s responsibilities led the Senate, on
February 7, 1964, to authorize Senator Metcalf “to perform the duties of the Chair
as Acting President pro tempore until otherwise ordered by the Senate” via S. Res.
296 (88th Congress). Senator Metcalf held the post throughout his remaining 14
years in the Senate.
Table 10. Permanent Acting President Pro Tempore
of the Senate, 1964-2007
Permanent Acting
Party
State
Congress
Dates
President Pro Tempore
Lee Metcalf
D
MT
88th-95th
Feb. 7, 1964-Jan. 12, 1978

---

CRS-27
Party Floor Leader
Each Senate party conference selects its floor leader (also called majority leader
or minority leader, as appropriate) in a secret-ballot vote at its organizational
meeting prior to the beginning of a new Congress. While these positions developed
later than (and arose from) the post of conference chair, they now represent the top
post in each party. The majority leader is the lead spokesperson for the party in the
chamber and is also responsible for scheduling the legislative activity of the Senate.
By precedent established in 1937, the majority leader is afforded priority recognition
on the floor. The minority leader leads and speaks for the minority party and is
consulted by the majority leader in scheduling Senate floor activity; he also has
preferential floor recognition, after the majority leader. The rules of each party
conference assign additional responsibilities to each floor leader, as well. In current
practice, the floor leader for Senate Democrats also serves as the party’s conference
chair. (See next section for description of conference chair positions.)
Table 11. Senate Republican Floor Leaders, 1919-2007
Floor Leader
State
Congress
Dates
Henry Cabot Lodge, Sr.a, b, c
MA
66th-68th
1919-Nov. 9, 1924d
Charles Curtisa, e
KS
68th-70th
Nov. 28, 1924-1929
James E. Watsona
IN
71st-72nd
1929-1933
Charles L. McNarya
OR
73rd-78th
1933-Feb. 25, 1944f
Wallace H. White, Jr.
ME
79th
1945-1949
80th
Kenneth S. Wherry
NE
81st-82nd
1949-Nov. 29, 1951g
Styles Bridges
NH
82nd
1952-1953
Robert A. Taft
OH
83rd
1953-July 31, 1953h
William F. Knowland
CA
83rd
Aug. 4, 1953-1959
84th-85th
Everett Dirksen
IL
86th-91st
1959-Sept. 7, 1969i
Hugh Scott
PA
91st-94th
Sept. 24, 1969-1977
Howard H. Baker
TN
95th-96th
1977-1985
97th-98th
Robert H. Dole
KS
99th
1985-June 11, 1996j
100th-103rd
104th
Trent Lott
MS
104th-106th
June 12, 1996 - Dec. 20, 2002k
107th
William H. Frist
TN
108th-109th
Dec. 23, 2002l-2007
Mitch McConnell
KY
110th
2007-
Sources: The principal source for this table is Byrd’s Historical Statistics, p. 505, with some details
provided by Riddick, Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate, pp. 1-11. See the “Source Notes
and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description and full citation of all sources.

---

CRS-28
Notes: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the floor leader was also majority leader for at
least half of the Congress. For example, while the Republicans began the 107th Congress with a
controlling majority, party control switched to the Democrats in June of the first session; the
107thCongress is therefore treated as being under Democratic party control in these tables, where
applicable.
a. Indicates a leader who was also conference chair. Prior to 1945, the Republican conference chair
and floor leader positions were held by the same individual.
b. While Byrd’s volume provisionally lists Republican Conference Chair Henry Cabot Lodge, Sr, as
the first Republican floor leader in practice, some sources treat two previous conference chairs
as floor leaders in practice. For example, Riddick includes (in Table III, “Seniority of Majority
and Minority Leaders of the Senate,” p.11) conference chairs Senator Shelby M. Cullom as
majority leader from 1911-1913 and Senator Jacob H. Gallinger as minority leader from 1913
until his death on August 17, 1918.
c. Elected conference chair in the 65th Congress on August 24, 1918, to replace Senator Gallinger.
Senator Lodge was not officially a floor leader; he was simply reelected to the conference chair
post in 1919, and the party had not yet employed the designation floor leader. Scholarly
opinion is that his role in the 66th to 68th Congresses, for all intents and purposes, was that of
the floor leader, however. Byrd’s volume provisionally lists him as the first majority leader
(Table 4-6, p. 506); Riddick includes him in Table III, p.11. Also see Widenor, “Henry Cabot
Lodge: The Astute Parliamentarian,” for additional supporting details.
d. Died in office, November 9, 1924.
e. Senator Charles Curtis was elected conference chair on November 28, 1924, to replace Senator
Henry Cabot Lodge, Sr., who died on November 9. On March 5, 1925, the Republican
conference also designated him as floor leader, the first Senator to hold the title.
f. Senator Charles L. McNary died on February 25, 1944. There is no reference in congressional
sources to the formal selection of a new Republican floor leader during the 78th Congress. In
his article summarizing “The Second Session of the Seventy-Eighth Congress (January 10-
December 18, 1944),” American Political Science Review, vol. 39, April 1945, pp. 317-336,
Floyd Riddick makes no mention of McNary’s death or the selection of a successor.
g. Died in office, November 29, 1951.
h. Died in office, July 31, 1953.
i. Died in office, September 7, 1969.
j. Resigned from Senate, June 11, 1996.
k. Elected June 12, 1996, to replace Senator Robert H. Dole, and resigned from majority leader post,
December 20, 2002.
l. Elected December 23, 2002, to replace Senator Trent Lott.
Table 12. Senate Democratic Floor Leaders
and Conference Chairs, 1893-2007
Floor Leader
State
Congress
Dates
Arthur P. Gormana, b
MD
53rd
1893-1898
54th-55th
N/Ac
55th-56th
1898-1901
John T. Morganb
AL
57th
1901-1902
James K. Jonesb
AR
57th
1902-1903
Arthur P. Gormand
MD
58th-59th
1903-June 4, 1906e
Joseph C.S. Blackburnf
KY
59th
June 9, 1906-1907g
Charles A. Culberson
TX
60th
1907-1909
Hernando D. Money
MS
61st
1909-1911
Thomas S. Martinf
VA
62nd
1911-1913

---

CRS-29
Floor Leader
State
Congress
Dates
John Worth Kernf
IN
63rd-64th
1913-1917
Thomas S. Martin
VA
65th
1917-Nov. 12, 1919h
66th
Oscar W. Underwoodf
AL
66th-67th
Apr. 27, 1920-1923i
Joseph T. Robinson
AR
68th-75th
1923-July 14, 1937j
73rd-75th
Alben W. Barkley
KY
75th-79th
July 22, 1937-1949k
80th
Scott W. Lucas
IL
81st
1949-1951
Ernest W. McFarland
AZ
82nd
1951-1953
Lyndon B. Johnson
TX
83rd
1953-1961
84th-86th
Mike Mansfield
MT
87th-94th
1961-1977
Robert C. Byrd
WV
95th-96th
1977-1989
97th-99th
100th
George J. Mitchell
ME
101st-103rd
1989-1995
Tom Daschlel
SD
104th-106th
1995-2005
107th
108th
Harry Reid
NV
109th
2005-
110th-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources. The principal source for this table is Byrd’s Historical Statistics, p.
503. Some additional details are from Riddick’s Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate, p. 1-
11. Initially the Senate Democratic Caucus, the name was officially changed to the Democratic
Conference in 1925.
Notes: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the floor leader was also majority leader for at
least half of the Congress. For example, while the Republicans began the 107th Congress with a
controlling majority, party control switched to the Democrats in June of the first session; the 107th
Congress is therefore treated as being under Democratic party control in these tables, where
applicable.
a. Byrd’s identification of the first Democratic conference chair begins with Senator Gorman in the
58th Congress. Other sources, however, rely on unofficial records to give Gorman that title in
the 53rd Congress, with Senators Morgan and Jones identified as such in later Congresses (after
a period in which reliable sources do not exist); see, for example, Riddick, Majority and
Minority Leaders of the Senate, Table I, p. 7.
b. Riddick identifies Senator Gorman as the first Democratic conference chair in 1893, though Byrd
does not designate him as such until the 58th Congress. This is also the case with the
designations of Senators Morgan in 1901 and Jones in 1902.
c. No reliable records from the caucus exist for this period.
d. Senator Gorman’s designation as conference chair in the 58th Congress is the first that can be
confirmed from official caucus minutes.
e. Died June 4, 1906.

---

CRS-30
f. Secondary sources generally identify Senator Kern as the first Democratic floor leader in the
modern sense of the term. See, for example, Oleszek, “John Worth Kern,” p. 10. Others have
made a case for designating Senator Blackburn as the first, since he was referred to as the
Democrats’ “chosen official leader” in a congratulatory resolution. See Riddick, p. 3. Still
others consider Senator Martin an early floor leader; see Oleszek, “John Worth Kern,” note 13.
Senator Underwood is the first person to be officially called floor leader in minutes of the party
conference, so some sources (e.g., Byrd) treat him as the first Democratic floor leader.
g. Elected June 9, 1906.
h. Died November 12, 1919. An initial caucus vote to replace Senator Martin resulted in a tie
between Senator Gilbert M. Hitchcock and Senator Underwood. Hitchcock briefly was acting
leader until Underwood was elected in April of 1920. See Riddick, p. 9, note 2.
i. Elected April 27, 1920.
j. Died July 14, 1937.
k. Elected July 22, 1937.
l. In the 107th Congress, Senator Daschle became majority leader on June 6, 2001, following a
change in party control of the Senate from Republican to Democratic.
Conference Chair
Each party has a conference organization consisting of all the elected Senators
from that party; it is the main body through which the party contingent at large
decides and communicates its legislative priorities. While each party’s conference
chair posts were the first formal party leadership positions in the Senate, eventually
floor leader positions were established as uppermost in each party’s leadership
hierarchy. Since 1945, Republicans have elected their conference chair separately
from other leadership posts, but the elected Democratic floor leader also serves as
chair of the Democratic Conference. (See Table 12 for the list of Democratic floor
leaders / conference chairs.)
Table 13. Senate Republican Conference Chairs, 1893-2007
Chair
State
Congress
Dates
John Shermana
OH
53rd
1893-1897
54th
William B. Allison
IA
55th-56th
1897-1901b
Eugene Hale
ME
57th
1901-1902
Orville Platt
CT
57th
1902-1903c
Eugene Hale
ME
58th
1903-1904
William B. Allison
IA
58th-59th
1904-1906
Eugene Hale
ME
59th
1906-1907
William B. Allisond
IA
59th
1907-1908
Nelson W. Aldrich
RI
60th
1908-1909
Eugene Hale
ME
60th-61st
1909-1910
Shelby M. Cullom
IL
61st-62nd
1910-1913
Jacob H. Gallinger
NH
63rd-65th
1913-1918
Henry Cabot Lodge, Sr.e
MA
65th
1918-1924
66th-68th

---

CRS-31
Chair
State
Congress
Dates
Charles Curtise
KS
68th-70th
1924-1929
James E. Watsone
IN
71st-72nd
1929-1932
Charles L. McNarye
OR
73rd-78th
1933-1944
Arthur H. Vandenberg
MI
79th
1945-1946
Eugene D. Millikin
CO
80th-82nd
1947-1956
83rd
84th
Leverett Saltonstall
MA
85th-89th
1957-1966
Margaret Chase Smith
ME
90th-92nd
1967-1972
Norris Cotton
NH
93rd
1973-1974
Carl T. Curtis
NE
94th-95th
1975-1978
Robert Packwood
OR
96th
1979-1980
James A. McClure
ID
97th-98th
1981-1984
John Chafee
RI
99th
1985-1990
101st
Thad Cochran
MS
102nd-103rd
1991-1996
104th
Connie Mack
FL
105th-106th
1997-2000
Richard J. Santorum
PA
107th
2001-2006
108th-109th
Jon Kyl
AZ
110th-
2007-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources. The principal source for this table is Byrd’s Historical Statistics, p.
502. Additional detail is from Riddick, Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate, pp. 7-9).
Records of the Republican Conference are extant only from 1911. Secondary sources (see Riddick,
pp. 7-9) provide information for years prior to 1893. Rothman, in his work, claims that Senator
Henry B. Anthony served as Republican caucus chair for an undetermined number of years beginning
in 1869 and that Senator George Franklin Edmunds served as chair from 1885 to 1891. See David
J. Rothman, Politics and Power: The United States Senate, 1869-1901, Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 1966, pp. 6, 28-30.
Notes: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the Republican party was in the majority for at
least half of the Congress. For example, while the Republicans began the 107th Congress with a
controlling majority, party control switched to the Democrats in June of the first session; the 107th
Congress is therefore treated as being under Democratic party control in these tables, where
applicable. Except for those individuals who also served as floor leader (as designated in next note),
sources do not provide specific dates of conference chair service (e.g., when there was a death or
resignation and, as a result, a mid-session election was held). Therefore, this table provides only
years of service for each conference chair and gives no specific dates for transitions that occurred
within a session.
a. Riddick indicates that secondary sources confirm Sherman as the first Republican conference chair
(Table I, p.7); Byrd starts his list (Table 4-1, p.502) with Allison’s tenure in the 55th Congress,
but notes Sherman’s previous tenure in a footnote.

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b. Byrd lists Senator Allison’s tenure in the position as 1897-1901, but Riddick maintains that
reliable records do not exist for 1898 to 1901.
c. Using unofficial sources, Riddick (Table I, p. 7) indicates that Senator George H. Hoar was briefly
conference chair in 1903. Byrd does not include him.
d. Using unofficial sources, Riddick (Table I, p. 7) indicates Senator Allison was chair; Byrd does
not include him.
e. Indicates individuals who were simultaneously identified as the floor leader. See Table 11 of this
report.
Party Whip
Senate Democrats first selected a party whip in 1913; Republicans followed in
1915. Some accounts of these early selections imply that the individuals were
initially appointed, but other contemporary accounts refer to conference elections
for the posts. (Republicans first formally codified their conference procedures in
1944, making it clear that the whip post was elected by the conference.) Today,
each party conference elects a party whip, who is also known in the Senate as the
assistant majority leader or assistant minority leader, depending on the party.
Typically, deputy whips are also appointed to assist the whip operation. The whips
communicate leadership priorities to the party rank-and-file (and vice versa),
provide leaders an assessment of member support for (or opposition to) pending
legislative matters, and mobilize support for leadership-supported measures under
consideration. For more information, see CRS Report RS20887, Senate Leadership:
Whip Organization, by Judy Schneider.
Table 14. Senate Democratic Whips, 1913-2007
Whip
State
Congress
Dates
James Hamilton Lewisa
IL
63rd-65th
1913-1919
Peter G. Gerry
RI
66th-70th
1919-1929
Morris Sheppard
TX
71st-72nd
1929-1933
James Hamilton Lewis
IL
73rd-75th
1933-1939
Sherman Minton
IN
76th
1939-1941
J. Lister Hill
AL
77th-79th
1941-1947
Scott W. Lucasb
IL
80th
1947-1949
Francis J. Myers
PA
81st
1949-1951
Lyndon B. Johnsonb
TX
82nd
1951-1953
Earle C. Clement
KY
83rd
1953-1957
84th
Mike Mansfieldb
MT
85th-86th
1957-1961
Hubert H. Humphrey
MN
87th-88th
1961-1965
Russell B. Long
LA
89th-90th
1965-1969
Edward M. Kennedy
MA
91st
1969-1971
Robert C. Byrdb
WV
92nd-94th
1971-1977

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Whip
State
Congress
Dates
Alan Cranston
CA
95th-96th
1977-1991
97th-99th
100th-101st
Wendell H. Ford
KY
102nd-103rd
1991-1999
104th-105th
Harry Reidb
NV
106th,
1999-2005
107th
108th
Richard Durbin
IL
109th
2005-
110th-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources. The principal source for this table is Byrd’s Historical Statistics, p.
509, with additional detail drawn from Oleszek, Majority and Minority Whips of the Senate.
Notes: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the Democratic whip was also the majority whip
for at least half of the Congress. For example, while the Republicans began the 107th Congress with
a controlling majority, party control switched to the Democrats in June of the first session; the
107thCongress is therefore treated as being under Democratic party control in these tables, where
applicable.
a. Senator James Hamilton Lewis became the first Democratic Party whip in 1913. In the
Congressional Record, Lewis himself referred to his “appointment,” but a press account the
next year said he was elected. See Oleszek, Majority and Minority Whips of the Senate, p. 4.
b. Indicates individuals who later advanced to floor leader.
Table 15. Senate Republican Whips, 1915-2007
Whip
State
Congress
Dates
James W. Wadsworth, Jr.a
NY
64th
1915
Charles Curtisb
KS
64th-65th
1915-1924
66th-68th
Wesley L. Jones
WA
68th-70th
1924-1929
Simeon D. Fess
OH
71st-72nd
1929-1933
Felix Hebert
RI
73rd
1933-1935
N/Ac
74th-77th
1936-1943
Kenneth S. Wherryb
NE
78th-79th
1944-1949
80th
Leverett Saltonstall
MA
81st-82nd
1949-1957
83rd
84th
Everett M. Dirksenb
IL
85th
1957-1959
Thomas H. Kuchel
CA
86th-90th
1959-1969
Hugh D. Scottb
PA
91st
1969

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CRS-34
Whip
State
Congress
Dates
Robert P. Griffin
MI
91st-94th
1969-1977
Ted Stevens
AK
95th-96th
1977-1985
97th-98th
Alan K. Simpson
WY
99th
1985-1995
100th-103rd
Trent Lottb
MS
104th
1995-June 12, 1996d
Don Nickles
OK
104th-106th
June 12, 1996-2003e
107th
Mitch McConnellb
KY
108th-109th
2003-2007
Trent Lott
MS
110th-
2007-
Sources: See the “Source Notes and Bibliography” section at the end of this report for a description
and full citation of all sources. The principal source for this table is Byrd’s Historical Statistics, p.
509, with additional details provided by Oleszek, Majority and Minority Whips of the Senate.
Notes: Bolded entries indicate Congresses in which the Republican whip was also majority whip for
at least half of the Congress. For example, while the Republicans began the 107th Congress with a
controlling majority, party control switched to the Democrats in June of the first session; the
107thCongress is treated as being under Democratic party control in these tables, where applicable.
a. Wadsworth was the first Republican whip, but served only one week before Senator Curtis was
named his successor. Some sources describe the selections as appointments, but clearly the
party eventually elected individuals to the post. The conference rules for such selection were
formally codified only in 1944, but the election practice seems to have been occurring prior
to this. See Oleszek, Majority and Minority Whips of the Senate, p. 5.
b. Indicates individuals who later advanced to floor leader.
c. Between 1936 and 1943, the Republican whip post was filled by informal, irregular appointment
by the Republican Leader.
d. Elected majority leader, June 12, 1996.
e. Elected to replace Senator Trent Lott as whip, June 12, 1996.

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CRS-35
Appendix: Political Party Abbreviations
Adams
Adams
Adams-Clay F
Adams-Clay Federalist
Adams-Clay R
Adams-Clay Republican
AJ
Anti-Jackson
Am
American (Know-Nothing)
Anti-Admin
Anti-Administration
C
Conservative
CRR
Crawford Republican
D
Democrat
F
Federalist
FL
Farmer-Labor
FS
Free Soil
I
Independent
ID
Independent Democrat
IR
Independent Republican
J
Jacksonian
JR
Jacksonian Republican
L
Liberty
LR
Liberal Republican
N
Nullifier
N/A
Party Unknown or No Party Affiliation
NR
National Republican
OP
Opposition
PO
Populist
PR
Progressive
Pro-Admin
Pro-Administration
R
Republican
R(DR)a
Jeffersonian, Jeffersonian Republican, or
Democratic Republican
RA
Readjuster
S
Silver
SR
Silver Republican
U
Unionist
UU
Unconditional Unionist
W
Whig
Source: This table is derived from Byrd, Historical Statistics, p. xvi.
a. While the Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1996 identifies the party
affiliation of certain Representatives in early Congresses as Republicans, the designation
“Democratic Republican” is more familiar to readers. This designation, R(DR), should not be
taken to refer to the contemporary Republican Party, which did not emerge until the 1850s.

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CRS-36
Source Notes and Bibliography
This report relies heavily on primary congressional sources and authoritative
documents such as the privately printed Biographical Directory of the American
Congress, 1774 to 1996, and a similar online adaptation, the Biographical Directory
of the United States Congress, 1774 to the Present. In addition, over the years,
individual Members of Congress, legislative aides, and scholars have gained limited
access to party conference journals. Reliable leadership lists have been compiled
from these sources. Where these have been published, they have been used as a
source in this report. This report also relies on secondary sources developed by
scholars. The Congressional Research Service made no attempt to gain access to
caucus or conference minutes in collecting data for this report.
Inevitably, conflicting interpretations occur in these data, even among sources
generally accepted as reliable. For example, there are disparities on the dates of
elections and tenure of Senate Presidents pro tempore between Byrd’s history, the
1911 Senate document, and Gamm and Smith’s research. The report attempts to
footnote these divergences where they occur.
Unless otherwise noted, the following sources were used to compile the tables
in this report:
Berdahl, Clarence. “Some Notes on Party Membership in Congress.” American
Political Science Review, vol. 43 (April 1949), pp. 309-332; (June 1949), pp.
492-508; and (August 1949), pp. 721-734.
Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1996. Washington: CQ
Staff Directories Inc., 1997.
Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774 to the Present.
Available online at [http://bioguide.congress.gov/biosearch/biosearch.asp].
Byrd, Robert C. The Senate, 1789-1989. 4 vols., 100th Congress, 1st session. S.
Doc. 100-20. Washington: GPO, 1988-1993.
Cannon, Clarence. “Party History.” Remarks in the appendix, Congressional
Record, vol. 89 (January 22, 1941), pp. A383-A384.
Congressional Directory. Washington: GPO, various years.
Congressional Globe. Washington, 1833-1873.
Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report. Washington: Congressional Quarterly,
Inc., various dates.
Congressional Record. Washington: GPO, 1873-present.
CRS Report RL30960. The President Pro Tempore of the U.S. Senate: History and
Authority of the Office, by Christopher M. Davis.

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CRS-37
Deschler, Lewis. Deschler-Brown Precedents of the United States House of
Representatives. 16 vols. Washington: GPO, 1977-2000.
Galloway, George B. “Leadership in the House of Representatives.” The Western
Political Quarterly, vol. 12, no. 2, (June 1959), pp. 417-441.
Gamm, Gerald and Steven S. Smith. “Last Among Equals: The Senate’s Presiding
Officer.” In Burdett A. Loomis, ed., Esteemed Colleagues: Civility and
Deliberation in the U.S. Senate, pp. 105-134. Washington: Brookings
Institution Press, 2000.
Martis, Kenneth C. The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States
Congress, 1789-1989. New York: Macmillan, 1989.
Oleszek, Walter J. Majority and Minority Whips in the Senate: History and
Development of the Party Whip System in the U.S. Senate. 99th Congress, 1st
session. S. Doc. 99-23. Washington: GPO, 1985.
——. “John Worth Kern: Portrait of Floor Leader.” In Richard A. Baker and Roger
H. Davidson, eds., First Among Equals: Outstanding Senate Leaders of the
Twentieth Century, pp. 7-37. Washington: CQ Press, 1991.
Ripley, Randall B. Party Leaders in the House of Representatives. Washington:
Brookings Institution Press, 1967.
——. “The Party Whip Organizations in the United States House of
Representatives.” American Political Science Review, vol. 58 (September
1964), pp. 561-576.
Rothman, David J. Politics and Power. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press,
1966.
U.S. Congress. Hinds’ and Cannon’s Precedents of the House of Representatives
of the United States. 11 vols. Washington: GPO, 1907-1908, 1935-1941.
——. House. Journal of the House of Representatives of the United States, 1789-
present, various publishers.
——. Senate. Journal of the Senate of the United States, 1789-present, various
publishers.
——. Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate: History and Development of
the Offices of the Floor Leaders. Prepared by Floyd M. Riddick. 99th
Congress, 1st session. S. Doc. 99-3. Washington: GPO, 1985.
——. President of the Senate Pro Tempore. 62nd Congress, 2nd session. S.Doc. 62-
101. Washington: GPO, 1911.
Widenor, William C. “Henry Cabot Lodge: The Astute Parliamentarian,” In Richard
A. Baker and Roger H. Davidson, eds., First Among Equals: Outstanding

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CRS-38
Senate Leaders of the Twentieth Century, pp. 38-62. Washington: CQ Press,
1991.

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